Capitol Calling

KBIA Commentary: Last Call

This KBIA commentary aired a few weeks ago. But I thought I would still post it for continuity purposes.

The piece takes a look at U.S. Rep. Blaine Luetkemeyer's first year in Congress and why Democrats may be stuck with him for awhile if they don't field a credible candidate this year.

Take a listen:

3. MO-9

 

BACKGROUND: You could argue that I was covering the battle over Missouri's Ninth District congressional seat before it was cool.

That's because I was assigned to the race in 2006, which featured a match up between Kenny Hulshof and Duane Burghard that was effectively over before it began. Even though Burghard was arguably a better candidate than previous Democratic challengers, he was underfunded and didn't come close to breaking through in the GOP-leaning congressional district. But you could say that I got hooked on the annual race, as it allowed me to examine a big area with an extensive and fascinating political history.

Things became more interesting when state Rep. Judy Baker waded into the Ninth District race in late 2007. But it wasn't until Hulshof decided not to run again that all electoral hell broke loose.

The Ninth District is unusual, because it has a fairly large bench of potential candidates from both major parties. Two former Democratic statewide officials - Joe Maxwell and Roger Wilson - are from the Ninth. And there are a whole bunch of Republicans who could hypothetically run for the seat. When filing ended, there were five Republicans and four Democrats running.

In essence, the Republican race was between Bob Onder and Blaine Luetkemeyer. And the Democratic contest was between Baker and Steve Gaw. But the other candidates had intriguing roles throughout the primary. Danie Moore, for instance, actually raised enough money to run television and radio advertisements. Lyndon Bode tried to appeal to conservative Democrats who were against abortion rights. Ken Jacob challenged Baker from the left. And there was also a random Republican candidate - Dan Bishir - who didn't really play any role in the campaign.

Despite the drama during the primary, Baker and Luetkemeyer won their primaries fairly easily. Afterward, both national parties promised to invest big money into the Ninth District race. That meant the district was subjected to a deluge of negative ads from both parties, a sure-fire sign of a competitive race. And while the race was indeed close, the Ninth stayed Republican with a Luetkemeyer victory.

WHY IT MADE THE LIST: Out of all the races I've covered, the Ninth District featured more interesting candidates, exchanges, controversies, weird events and drama than any other campaign. It brought national attention to a congressional district that few thought about in the realm of competitiveness. And it signaled Blaine Luetkemeyer's comeback from the political abyss.

 

Alas, redistricting means that it'll be a rare event for U.S. House seats to be regularly contested. Although this year may break that trend, it may become a pretty predictable affair after 2012. So, I'm thankful I got to cover such a wild affair before it becomes boring again.

  

FUN FACT: Jeff Schaeperkoetter - a Democrat from Gasconade County - nearly ran for the seat. He dropped out, making a Luetkemeyer-Schaeperkoetter match impossible.

 

#2...

Everybody loves a list!

With only a few days left before the end of the decade, I thought it would be a fitting finale to count down the 25 greatest stories I got to cover in the 2000s. I'm going to stick with material I covered. The Kansas City Star's Steve Kraske compiled a more comprehensive list here.

 

Some of these stories may be funny. Others may be serious. But regardless, I hope this list provides a engaging and light finale to the decade of despondence.

So to start off, here's number 25:

 

25. Bob Barker visits the Missouri Capitol Building

(Nick King photo)

BACKGROUND: If you venture up to the third floor of the Missouri Capitol Building, you’ll find busts of so-called “Famous Missourians.” The usual suspects – Walt Disney, John Ashcroft and Mark Twain – are present. But in 2007, House Speaker Rod Jetton sent a wave of excitement through the halls when he tabbed game show host Bob Barker to enter the Hall of Famous Missourians.

Barker, of course, was the longtime host of The Price is Right, one of the most popular television shows in history. And when news got out that he was coming to Jefferson City, thousands of people jammed into the Rotunda to catch glimpse of the “bronzed star.” He made a very entertaining speech, took some questions from the press and signed autographs. It was a run-of-the-mill speaker story. But come on! It’s Bob Barker!

WHY IT MADE THE LIST: The Hall of Famous Missourians is a ceremonial honor that has little impact on the future of the state. But Barker’s visit attracted more visitors than most events I've witnessed. It wasn’t even close. And best of all, Barker showcased a terrific sense of humor, never wavering from dropping references to his cameo in Happy Gilmore. Believe it or not, that film still strikes a cord for people who are in my age bracket. "You're going to die clown" is still music to my ears.

FUN FACT:  Columbia Daily Tribune photographer Nick King managed to snap a picture of Christine Franck holding a signed photo of Bob Barker. Christine Franck is the wife of Matt Franck, who at the time was a capital reporter for the St. Louis Post-Dispatch.

#24...

Luetkemeyer praises Obama's Afghanistan decision

U.S. Rep. Blaine Luetkemeyer, R-St. Elizabeth, praised President Barack Obama's decision to send more troops to Afghanistan.

Obama made the announcement official tonight in a national speech from West Point. His plan would send roughly 30,000 troops to the war-torn country for an 18 month period.

Here's the freshman lawmaker's statement:

“After much delay, it is good to see that the president and the administration have finally decided to give our troops critical resources that they need to move forward with our mission in Afghanistan. I look forward to working with my colleagues and military commanders to ensure that our troops have the resources they need to complete their mission and return home safely. We must never waver in our support for our men and women in uniform as they stand on the front lines of freedom and fearlessly fight to protect our nation and families.”

CBT: Forsee letter sparks debate

University of Missouri System President Gary Forsee's letter opposing "Cap and Trade" legislation is attracting a lot of attention from both sides of the political spectrum.

Republicans such as U.S. Rep. Roy Blunt, R-Springfield, and popular radio host Rush Limbaugh are praising Forsee's opposition to the bill. But supporters of the legislation aimed at cutting carbon emissions aren't so enthusiastic.

You can read more about Forsee's letter and the reaction at the Columbia Business Times Blog.

KTKA: Baker appointed HHS regional director

KTKA, a news channel in Topeka, is reporting that former state Rep. Judy Baker was appointed as a regional director for the federal Department of Health and Human Services.

From the news channel's Web site:

Judy Baker, a former member of the Missouri House of Representatives, will serve as the regional director for Region VII, a region that includes Kansas, Iowa, Missouri and Nebraska. Her work in the Missouri House was rooted in health care.

“Judy Baker brings an extensive, working-level knowledge of our department’s most important issues, as well as a knowledge of the people and institutions in Region VII,” Secretary Sebelius said. “Her experience and talents make her an especially valuable member of the HHS team."

The appointment most likely means that Baker is opting against challenging U.S. Rep. Blaine Luetkemeyer, R-St. Elizabeth, next year. Baker lost to Luetkemeyer in the high-profile race for the U.S. Ninth District by several percentage points.

Luetkemeyer does not have an announced opponent for next year's election cycle yet.

House passes health care bill in a squeaker

C-Span probably better ratings than usual yesterday after politicos watched the U.S. House pass a major health care bill by a tiny margin.

The bill - which would institute a government health insurance program, force most Americans to purchase insurance and expand Medicaid to 150 percent of the federal poverty level - passed 220-215. Only one Republican - U.S. Rep. Joseph Cao, R-La. - voted for the bill. Approximately 39 Democrats - including U.S. Rep. Ike Skelton, D-Lexington - voted against it.

Otherwise, the Missouri delegation essentially voted on party lines on the bill. U.S. Reps. Lacy Clay, D-St. Louis, Emanuel Cleaver, D-Kansas City, and Russ Carnahan, D-St. Louis, voted for the bill. U.S. Rep. Blaine Luetkemeyer, R-St. Elizabeth, Sam Graves, R-Tarkio, Jo Ann Emerson, R-Cape Girardeau, Todd Akin, R-Town and Country, and Roy Blunt, R-Springfield.

One reason why the bill probably passed was an amendment that banned the public option or any insurance plan subsidized with government tax credits from paying for abortions. If that amendment isn't in the final bill, it may make the final House vote a whole lot more suspenseful.

Here's Luetkemeyer's floor speech on the bill:

 

House plan would push up Medicaid eligbility

One of the most important aspects of the pending federal health care bill for Missouri could be how Congress expands Medicaid. Multiple versions of the federal legislation would push the minimum eligibility rates far beyond the Show Me State's current levels, a move that could force the state to expend resources when the provision goes into effect.

One Senate version of the health care bill would push the minimum eligibility rate to 133 percent of the federal poverty level. The feds would pick up most of the cost. But the House unveiled a new version of its health care bill today that would make the minimum rate 150 percent of the federal poverty level.

Details are still filtering in about how much the expansion would cost the state. Scott Rowson, a spokesman at the Missouri Department of Social Services, said the agency does not have a cost estimate on the House proposal yet. He said that the move would add roughly 291,000 people to the state's Medicaid program.

It should be noted that the final cost of the provision to the state probably won't be known until a final bill is passed and signed into law. Even if the House passed a bill that, say, made states pay for 40 percent of the expansion, that could be taken out when the House and Senate bills are combined later on in the process.

At least one member of Missouri's congressional delegation is speaking out against the expansion provision. Paul Sloca, a spokesman for U.S. Rep. Blaine Luetkemeyer, R-St. Elizabeth, sent the following e-mailed statement:

“At a time when states all across the country are being forced to make difficult decisions to balance their budgets, the powers that be in Washington have deemed it necessary to pass the mother of all unfunded mandates unto the states. This is wrong.  The federal government should not be forcing states to expand services they simply cannot afford.”

Sloca also wrote that according to a Democratic summary produced by the Ways and Means, Energy and Commerce and Education and Labor committees, the expansion would be paid for by the feds for the first couple of years. After that, states would have to pick up 9 percent of the expansion.

By the way, this is what Sen. Claire McCaskill, D-Missouri, said about the issue earlier in the year. She indicated that expanding Medicaid to 133 percent of the federal poverty level would make it harder for the bill to stay "deficit neutral:"

Luetkemeyer reiterates opposition to hate crimes legislation

I noted last week that U.S. Rep. Blaine Luetkemeyer, R-St. Elizabeth, voted for a defense bill with an amendment expanding federal hate crimes legislation to sexual orientation. The freshman legislator noted that while he opposed the hate crimes part of the bill, he still felt the measure needed to be passed.

As a reiteration of sorts, Luetkemeyer signed onto a letter of several other Republicans who voted for the defense bill and objected to the decision to include the hate crimes provision.

“We object to the inclusion of the ‘hate crimes’ provisions in the National Defense Authorization Act Conference Report for Fiscal Year 2010, and regret that legislation intended to provide vital support to our military personnel would be used to advance a social agenda,” said the six lawmakers in the letter. “We all agree that criminal activity against anyone is absolutely intolerable and should be punished to the fullest extent of the law.  However, we also feel that adding controversial hate crimes provisions to a historically bipartisan bill is an affront to our military. We wish to express our deep disappointment that our dedicated military personnel could be misused to promote social policy.”

Luetkemeyer was the only Republican in the Missouri delegation to vote for the defense legislation. Every Democrat in the Missouri delegation voted in the affirmative.

I asked Luetkemeyer spokesman Paul Sloca whether Luetkemeyer has received any criticism from constituents over voting for the defense bill. In an e-mail, Sloca said that "while some people were concerned about the vote at first, they understood that Blaine was putting principle before politics by voting for our troops."

"There also was a lot of anger toward Nancy Pelosi for attaching liberal legislation to a defense bill, and Blaine clearly expressed that in his letter to the Speaker,” Sloca wrote.

The Hill: Mo. representatives say Limbaugh may help Rams

The Hill is reporting that U.S. Reps. Emanuel Cleaver, D-Kansas City, and Blaine Luetkemeyer, R-St. Elizabeth, are supportive of radio host Rush Limbaugh purchasing the St. Louis Rams:

There is bipartisan support in the Missouri delegation for Rush Limbaugh’s bid for the St. Louis Rams. And one Democratic is willing to do almost anything to help his home-state team — even if it means endorsing Rush Limbaugh’s effort to buy the winless bunch.

Rep. Emanuel Cleaver (D-Mo.) told ITK, “With both the [Kansas City] Chiefs and Rams yet to win a game this season, maybe Rush’s fire and brimstone can inspire the Rams to victory.”

GOP Rep. Blaine Luetkemeyer (Mo.) also favors Limbaugh’s effort, but his reasons are more strategic than inspirational.

“One has to wonder whether a Limbaugh-led team would be too conservative in its play-calling,” he joked to ITK in an e-mail, “and less likely to run left. I’m sure, however, that the team’s pass ‘rush’ would improve.”

Read the rest here.